1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to techniques for allowing the use of registered devices.
2. Related Art
JP-A-2001-312380 discloses a technique for prohibiting the printing of a print job in the case where a user ID is not registered.
Furthermore, JP-A-2005-43996 discloses a method where when a printer has malfunctioned, a user's printer is exchanged with a loaner device, and the user's printer is then taken to a repair center and repaired.
If printing is prohibited in the case where registration has not been carried out, as in JP-A-2001-312380, when the user's printer has been exchanged for a loaner device, as in JP-A-2005-43996, it is necessary for the user to register the loaner device as well. There has thus been a problem in that forcing a user to perform the registration operation for a loaner device that will be used only temporarily has been disagreeable from the point of view of the users. Furthermore, loaner devices owned by a manufacturer (or a service center) normally cannot be registered, and there is thus an additional problem in that users may be forced to carry out the registration operations in vain.